Paperback

Winner of the Sahitya Academy Awards 2009, Aadujeevitham is the Malayalam original written by Benyamin , and translated by Joseph Koyipally ,touches lives,dreams, migrancy and life’s yearning in the brief shades poignantly portrayed by the writer.

The novel opens with an anxious Najeeb and Hakeem yearning for a prison life ,even prison seems a safer place.For Najeeb when the situations back home to build a firm foundation in terms of monetary growth seemed fruitless,like the thousand others he too moves out to make it big. He dreams of migrating to Arabia and own riches to make his Umma , Sumayya and Nabeel happy.Does his fervent desire turn true?

Landing in an airport in an alien land, Hakeem and Najeeb are carried away by an arbab. Not knowing whats in store,they only get seperated and face a harsh life.With unwashed body and company of goats,he only lives for the present.Every attempt to escape seems futile.The harassment ,the loneliness,coming in terms with grim realities tends to narrate a tale of how unexpected life could turn out to .

The brilliant description of the Arab deserts ;the blistering rains ,the search for an oasis ,the Golden sunset and the different creatures that make or mar the desert have their own spaces which we can neither tread nor raze.The heart wrenching story of hunger ,thirst ,human longing ,finely captured in the simplest of words make it a good read for all age-groups .

What astounded me the most The pristine goodness of Najeeb through all hardships ,the preseverance that the Almighty has wonderful plans is overwhelming .He prays for the safety of others and to be more merciful with others .I really wondered if Ibrahim Khadri was a a real life character .

“If the Almighty could sometimes travel in a luxury car”

then Ibrahim Khadri and the fourth man who hits him flat in the plains of the desert

remains a puzzle!

The book would appeal to young ,old and has a universal appeal in terms of human longing ,loneliness,flicker of hope and an outstanding moral message that require no language or boundaries.The book influenced many a Malayalam film, the echoes and similarity of which we find in Gadhama Arabi kadha and Pathayamari

Lost in Translation The effort by Joseph Koyipally is worth lauding for the translation credited this wonderful book at the international level.I really regret that I am not fortunate enough to have read the book in Malayalam for it might have lost its subtle charm in translation and titular relevance .

Rating 4/5 ,The rating would have been higher in Malayalam , I guess.

Conclusion The desert teaches many lessons.The charm and warmth of people that adds meaning to life,the precious value of water which is the elixir of Life and the childhood dreams ,…is it worth giving it a second thought?

As I bring the book to a close ,there’s that hang out…The sands have blistered my feet,parched my throat and I gasp for breath.In this wonderful tale I really wonder how lucky we are with our dear ones and to feel the coolness of soothing water all around .

“If you had a wish , you had to kneel before the tree and whisper it. And if the tree agreed to grant it , it would shed exactly ten leaves on your head’

As I complete reading And the Mountains Echoed, I sit beside my keyboard as if I were to make a confession.

Blessed I am that I chanced on this book at tbs bookstore, Calicut, though I was there looking for another purchase , the image of the little boy and Girl smiling , with the mountains at the bachdrop was so captivating, that I couldn’t ignore the triple set of A Thousand Splendid Suns and The Kite Seller.

The central theme , the Story of love … of brother , Abdullah who would go to any extent ,even to trade his shoes for a feather of Peacock , to make his sister , Pari happy .Having lost their mother Abdullah is the one who cares for her ,though he has a step mother.They make life-plans that they will live close to each other, no matter even a hundreds of years could pass by . Like the story of the div, the little fairy tale gives us a miniature picture of their seperation.

Connected around their lives , we peek into the lives of the different characters .We have characters in the form of Nila Wahdati and Madaline , their aspirations , their careers , and their vague hazy view of life , of making it big and still there are the others Odelia Varvaris and Pari , Abdullah’s daughter , caring ,supporting , and lives like a canopy to brighten the lives of others.

The story of Wahdati and Nabi is equally poignant with years rolling by in a silent mansion where one cannot even sniff the return of somebody awaited . The gender inclinations , the choices of Nabi and how far he turns instrumental in tracking out the roots for Abdullah and Pari is simply amazing. We find fate working in the lives of Marcos and Thalima , though not connected by kin or blood ,

If “A thing of beauty is a joy forever” Thalima turns out to be the most striking , most beautiful being who splashes traces of happiness in lives reality , the little lessons Marcos learns

What I liked about the book , the narrative in first person is too good . I liked the way , the story of each character , though spread and seperated make their appearences in abrupt and unexpected ways. The story is about loneliness , isolation , seperation , loss , fulfilling responsibilities , the choices one makes .

And as we read ,we just pause to think , So yeah….they are here!

“All my life , I have lived like an aquarium fish in the safety of a glass tank , behind a barrier as impenetrable as it has been transperent .” echoes deep of how we contain ourselves to the unyielding confines of the existence that bonds construct around us.

The book is undoubtedly , like the magic spell ; would appeal to children , students ,young adults and through all age groups .

I regret not having read the book much earlier , My first book of Khalid Hosseini chains me to be a life long disciple of this splendid writer, even a fragment of whose portrayal of life would be an impossibility to replicate and a distant dream for many a writer. I think , the Asian connect could not be ignored because each word goes directly into my heart.

A born-writer that’s what I can say, though I am not qualified or an expert to assess or review these masterly strokes , but yes a 4.5 / 5 grading . I am indebted to Hosseini for the different threads of life that I see in this gem of a book. Parents, siblings, spouse , friends , uncle …..all drifting and sometimes clinging so close to your feet , the realisation…. how blessed we are, to have family , identity, roots They say today the world is shrinking, everybody getting closer ,somewhere the family connect is widening and Hossein’s book comes as a jolt ,when realisation dawns on us.“Will our loved ones always remain young , healthy and close to us?”

If one were to search for the village Shadbagh, it’s only an imaginary one ,one which none can track on the map but the narrative and the tale , is so life like that I felt I was living in the pages ,

Will they ever meet? As I leaf through , tears and a jab of pain fills me . I really feel the loss of an unknown pain “But time, it is like charm ,You never have as much as you think .” leaves the reader in a trance and earn for what is not.

“The Mountains are as bigger and as hidden as our dreams…..If we could surmount , the inner space becomes as infallibe as the dream itself …. Hosseini’s mastercraft leaves an enchantment… If magic be the spell of words , I wish I travelled the pages of a never ending tale”

Advantage India From Challenge to Opportunity is published by Harper Collins ,co-authored by A.P.J.Abdul Kalaam, former president of India and Srijan Pal Singh ,a social entrepreuner. This is a promising book for the present generation with a carefully researched and Scientific angle to tap the vast potential of its diverse initiatives.Fondly called the missile man of India,Abdul Kalaam gives fresh meaning and hope to discover opportunities all the way.

The prologue questions the ambitious Make in India,a competitive work force,Digital India Connecting Villages,Data Analysis which addresses issues of corruption and the various departments working together for the Nation’s development.For Kalaam, even the small dhaba is a work station of great efficiency where a single person “takes pride in one’s duty’and this is the key to ethical professionalism . In eastern U.P,travelling Jaunpur district,he finds migrant workers using mobile money transfer ,which means without basic literacy,they have landed directly into digital literacy.

Is India’s political system inclusive?many questions are raised regarding the political field unevenly skewed in favour of the rich.A challenge to solve and achieve is the rich-poor divide,the Super rich billionaires in India stands third, while 80% of population are Below poverty line residing in villages lost in the glare.

With fine examples of Agni model, Brahmos Way and the Coco-cola business model he speaks of pathways to National Productivity and the need to globally skill our youth to earn international wages .The human Resources with regard to Quality of School education,knowledge resource ,employabilty and health are co-related.But the PISA evaluation of Student Assessment and lack of employability skills among engineering students points at quality issues which are lacking in our education system.

This wonderful book had touched all areas of the Nation,the health standards,E-commerce,better voting reforms, clean Civil service,Corruption Water ,population,smart cities and Mission Mode governance

I liked the book ;Abdul kalaam focuses on time-bound employable skill force and a revamp of university education.He believes that the school sylabus at high school and higher secondary should allot 25%to skill development programmes. Kalaam makes a mention of the Piramal Fellowship,where we find professionals work with school Principals and how their innovative ideas improvise teaching of Math , thus bringing a whole transformation to the Principals who shape teachers and students.So his vision about starting an ITS (Indian Teaching Service)is totally captivating because he want it to be treated at par with IAS&IPS .

I liked Kalaam speaking about the doubts of “working with integrity” among Civil service cadre and how one has to establish a brand of integrity of themselves so as to make a barrier of all negative and corrupt forces around them.I marvel that pertinent question he puts to the cadre “What I will be remembered for?”which is also a question each and every citizen should question himself….”What should I leave behind for my Nation,What should I leave behind for the world?”

Kalaam also touches on Black money and how a cashless society,IT based transcations could reduce Corruption

Opinion The common man’s perception of Politics is far from satisfactory,So Kalaam envisions reforms in the electoral system which should have a firm foundation of unbreakable promises and infalible delivery.He also gives full freedom of Right to Reject and also wants to embrace the Right to Recall where people can indicate their choice for or against recall.

Book would appeal equally to students, Politicians,leaders, IIMs ,IITs,civil Services,teaching professionals, and all looking forward for the development of the nation

Rating Undoubtedly five stars

Conclusion The epilogue is simply amazing with an Allegory of pretty interesting characters ; Veera,the buffalo,Teja( UAV),an unknown flying Object and Thor,thorium present in the waters of Kerala.

Imagination has tremendous potential that’s what Kalaam sums up .Having met 21 million youth in a span of two decades ,he was able to soar the imagination and dreams of the youth with his “Wings of Fire” and in this book he gives his Message in the form of an eleven point oath on what the youth can do.

“I can do it,We can do it,India will, do it”……this mind affirmation is so strong that we are left dreaming of a world where one among three people would be an Indian and how much we could contribute to the world.

“When inspired by great mission,it’s like a northern star guiding the ship”Truely his words have inspired us and would do for many years to come

Having read,”Snow” a wonderful read by Orhan Pamuk,I chanced on A Strangeness in my mind in a silent corner of a Book Store.The title name borrowed from Wordsworth’s ,The Prelude,

“I had melancholic thoughts,a strangeness in my mind.”

This is the story of Mevlut ,son of Mustafa Aktas, a boza seller who arrives in Istanbul.As a teenage school boy,for Mevlut ,Istanbul is only a tiny dot in the map ,though later he watches the myriad changes of the Old city changing to a new one.He sells boza with his father and also joins Atarturk boy’s school followed by a brief military service.When he is twenty five he returns to his village to elope with Rayiha.He had spent three years writing love letters to a girl,whom his eyes met at his cousin’s wedding.He believes its God ordained chance encounter. Unfortunately , Mevlut discovers that he had eloped with the girl’s sister.

Mevlut loves his wife,Rayiha .They try to live selling boza, rice with chickpeas and new buisness ideas are born with Ferhat and Samiha, but the political picture jealousy ,doubts offers a different route.The coming together of Ferhat and Mevlut ,old childhood friends scripts a new dimension to the story.Mevlut feels Ferhat had changed a lot from the days they made money with “kismet” .In his lonely middle age there’s this strangeness in his mind.It’s kismet(fate) again playing the game and a puzzling question to Mevlut unto his last.

I liked it because Each character speaks in first person.The author makes us feel each character has his voice,his own life and perspectives.For Pamhuk,each character is a story He could get into the shoes of his women characters ,be it a graceful Rayiha or a strong Samiha Over the years, in Fathima and Fevziya we find a Turkey which has more liberal views in quality education for women The story is also about poor migrants transforming Istanbul.

My Favourite Character ,undoubtedly Mevlut.The curious School boy ,his childish innocence,and a heart that never betrays.The simple life of a street vendor,elevated with his thoughtfulness, oscillating between unfulfilled dreams and aspiring future,yet with a pristine virtue where he tries to see the good side in everything.He loves and cherishes his graceful Rayiha and showers love on Fathima and Fevziya

What I did not like. Mevlut’s gullible nature ,his falling victim to situations, inability to fight back.But that is all what makes the story so special.

Suspense There’s nothing much of suspense,as one reads through the story we understand how things were designed.But leafing through the final pages,looks like how fate had many things in store…which we could never guess

Emotions it evoked, The words of the holy man

“A man who has no intention to pray will never hear the call to prayer;we only hear what we want to hear ,and see what we want to see” has much significance in Mevlut’s life

Intentions come in two forms ,”That which our heart intends and that which our words intend”..The answer to this puzzle Mevlut discovers is,Kismet(fate)…the force that bridged the gap between what our heart intends and what our words intended.Is love something on first sight or something much much bigger.Does he find his answer,that is the real story

The book would equally appeal to late teens,young adult,adults and old alike.The memorable touch that Mevlut leaves behind endears us to Istanbul.In a way the author’s homeland is looked with awe,the traditions ,the culture and we seem to share a connection with Istanbul

Grade points The heart mind connect is amazing.Whether it’s Rayiha’s intention that finally won or what Mevlut fantacized or what he actually lived.The final truth is an eye opener,leaving the reader choked.The best Valentine gift,I must say

9/10 for his patience and creating a 625 pages masterpiece over the changing landscape of fifty years of Istanbul….And the impact it has on the silent lives of people like you and me.

This is your very first post. Click the Edit link to modify or delete it, or start a new post. If you like, use this post to tell readers why you started this blog and what you plan to do with it.

Text Widget

This is a text widget, which allows you to add text or HTML to your sidebar. You can use them to display text, links, images, HTML, or a combination of these. Edit them in the Widget section of the Customizer.